The Grass Whisperer
“The Grass Whisperer” published in Lancaster Farming
If Corn is considered King, and Alfalfa is the Queen, then grasslands/pastureland seem to be treated as the court jester of forages. This was the case at a recent visit to my local government agency office and why we graziers are the Rodney Dangerfield’s of our agricultural system. “Looking at your map, it is showing you have 46 crop acres on your farm, is this correct?” she said. “Well, not really, what happened to the other 54 acres I own, I asked?” “Oh, that land is not considered cropland by our system, she pronounced.” As the hair slowly started to stand on the back of my neck and I could feel my pulse quicken, I made a proclamation so all could hear my frustration. “So what your basically saying is my 100 acres of rotationally grazed pastures that produce some 30,000 lbs. of the finest grass-finished beef are not considered as a crop?” “Essentially yes, it’s not part of the commodity crops recognized by our system, she declared.”
That certainly set me back of why I haven’t visited the office in many moons and why our grazing funding initiatives are rarely addressed. Grass just grows, so why do we need to worry about it, but we all know nothing could be farther from the truth. Without getting overly upset about the obvious frustration we grass-based farmers face, I consider this lack of respect and understanding as a great opportunity for education on the value of well managed grasslands in this era of climate change. Dust off your cap and gown, because this message has to be brought forward by you, the grazier, to the policymakers for some critical thinking. The good news is we have plenty of help to spread the word, from conservationists and watershed coalitions to chefs and health care professionals.
I wonder what a grass-based system would look like if we invested the kind of money and subsidies that we have put into the big 5 commodity crops. I wonder how our water and soil resources would look like under the cover of diverse pastures. I wonder how the health of the animals and consumers would be under this system of green and not under a high fructose syrup mentality. I also wonder how my ancestors would view the “get big or get out” syndrome that has stripped our landscape of practically 98% of the farming population. Pretty interesting stuff to think about as the price of a barrel of oil nears a 100 bucks.
The quandary of this crazy grazing idea is if all the livestock were harvesting their own feed and spreading their own manure, how would that help the agricultural service entities and the economy. Is there anything wrong with paying yourself well first for all your management and hard work? I think not. Here lies the dark side of what us grazing advocates face. Most of us are frowned upon, as we help farmers utilize their pasture resources better, which can help their bottom line, which seems to be in direct contradiction with folks trying to sell something. The bottom line for myself and our communities is that acre of tightly bound sod not only enhances the economic performance of a farm but also has important attributes to water quality, topsoil, open space, wildlife habitat and now in the forefront is the excitement surrounding high quality grass-fed meat, dairy and poultry products. Like our grasses, that have felt the wrath of the plow, chemicals, wars, droughts and floods, we graziers have also seen plenty of damages from a big corporate cheap food system that all wants to taste the same at the expense of it’s most loyal stewards. I think its time we ask questions and demand answers. As you discuss my thoughts over the Thanksgiving Holiday, take solace in the phrase that “With Grazing, Conservation never tasted so Good”.